At The Edge of Our Longing

God speaks to each of us only in making us
And the walks silently with us out of the night.
But the words before our beginning,
cloudy words are these:

"Sent out by your senses,
Go to the edge of your longing,
Give me something to wear.

Flare up like a fire behind all things,
So that their shadows expand
to always cover me fully.

Let everything happen to you: Beauty and terror
Just keep going: No feeling is the farthest out.
Do not let yourself be parted from me.
Near is the land
which they call life.

You will know it
by its earnestness.

Give me your hand."

Rainer Maria Rilke
(translated by Br. David Steindl-Rast,OSB)

taken from The Edge of Our Longing - Unspoken Hunger for Sacredness and Depth
by James Conlon, pg10